HealthyBea

Feeling Your Best This Holiday Season

This post brings me so much energy because it involves a topic I am particularly passionate about: partaking in each holiday festivity while maintaining holistic wellness. Trust me when I say this is not because it has always come easy to me nor that I have perfected it. In fact, I am a credible source only because I have worked through many holidays feeling my worst. 

I understand the unlimited pressure, stress, and temptations this season presents. From work lunches and happy hours to friend and neighbour cookie swaps and festive meals, the indulgences, late nights, and expectations seem to consistently dampen health-related priorities. Have no fear, though, this post is not meant to discourage you from participating in these activities. Of course not! These events construct the warmest and most joyful time of the year. Instead, my intention is to support you in navigating them so that you can approach the season with ease and enjoy with a sound mind and healthy body. 

Below includes a list of themes which I believe have the ability to cause us both stress and joy year round, with their impacts only emphasised October through December. I provide some tips and insight under each to support your happiest holiday season yet. Nothing I share is mind-blowing; this is information we all know. But I find value in reminding myself of the steps I need to take to feel my best, so hopefully they will equip you similarly. 

Consumption: Drinks, Sweets, & Decadent Meals

My biggest food-specific wakeup call at one point in my life is the realisation that I don’t need to eat or drink every festive treat just because it’s tied to the celebration. I don’t need to drink red wine on Thanksgiving, cocktails on Christmas Eve, champagne on New Year’s Eve. Just because there are three pies available for dessert which I only see this time of year doesn’t mean I have to taste them all. Even though I love crackers, fluffy bread rolls, and roast potatoes, no one is requiring me to consume all three throughout one meal. 

Now I am not saying don’t enjoy these things if they are what you really want. But I am encouraging you to think about whether you really do. I don’t know what caused the light to switch for me, but one year it hit me that I was only consuming certain items because of an obscure pressure I felt, similar to my ridiculous commitment to watch every single Christmas movie each season – even the ones that make me cringe. I didn’t want to be “lame,” I didn’t want to “miss out,” and I wasn’t considering the physical and mental impacts of the meal. The REAL freedom, I discovered, was considering what I really wanted to enjoy without expectations and with a true evaluation of how it would make me feel holistically. 

But when it comes to practical advice, my strategy is to double down on protein and veggies during the meals I can control and then seek them out while partaking in samples of the more indulgent options while dining on limited menus. The last thing I want you to do is crave an item and then deprive yourself of it. That’s no way to live and no way to practice a healthy lifestyle! Instead, use the nutritious items to fuel your body first and then see what room (and interest) you have for a little bit of the good for your soul dishes. Finally, don’t drink to get drunk. I will lay down that law. It’s not worth it and you are certainly not setting yourself up for success the following day. Experiment by extending each drink as long as you can and maybe alternate between non-alcoholic options. And don’t forget ample water! I feel like I am preaching to my non-existent child.

Sleep

This activity might be the most challenging because late, or at least later, nights are inevitable this time of year. Between weekend parties and post work events, it becomes very difficult to maintain a normal sleep schedule. My advice here is to stand up for yourself and express your need to leave by a certain time in order to get to bed by a semi-reasonable hour. Be flexible, of course, but also stay true to what you need to find success and mental clarity the following day. 

Especially knowing that I still enjoy waking up early on holiday and the day after evening events, I tend to plan an exit strategy, including the time I’d like to leave. Bonus points if I let people know early on so that it doesn’t come as a shock to them and so that they don’t try (as hard) to entice me to stay past my breaking point. 

Finally, I know that reading just a few pages before I turn out the lights makes a world of a difference to my quality of sleep. However, one of my vices includes staying up too late scrolling through Instagram IF I don’t have a book captivating enough to force (yes, force) me away from my little screen. I realise that not everyone has discovered a love of reading, but I recommend finding something soothing that allows you to wind down and promote sleep. You could journal, listen to soft music, meditate, pray, read a magazine (do those still exist? 😉 ). Anything to stay off of your phone so that you’re not also sucked into mindless scrolling when you should be sleeping. 

Movement

Please please please do not give up on regular exercise because of the excuse that “you will start over in the new year.” You DESERVE to take better care of yourself than that. Absolutely take the time to rest if you need it. This may include lower impact movement, a shorter workout, or even an extra off day, but whatever you do, DO NOT fall into the trap of giving up until January. This attitude lends itself to additional unhealthy behaviours, such as staying up too late, drinking abundantly, or nibbling on the additional pastry (that you don’t have as much will-power or energy to avoid without the motivation and stable mindset resulting from your movement). 

If you have trouble finding the resource or space to maintain an exercise routine, consider going for walks, finding a corner inside or out for a 30-minute HIIT workout, traveling to a track for a jog, or focusing on bodyweight-only exercises. There are an abundance of solutions, so don’t trick yourself into believing you are too lazy to find them! When your motivation lags, consider to yourself, “how badly do I want to feel good?” Hopefully that makes a difference ❤ 

Socialising: Family & Friends 

I deeply understand the potential anxiety of being back home with family. If you’re anything like me, a visit to your childhood town evokes deep feelings – both positive and negative. It allows me to recall some of my happiest moments growing up with a sense of nostalgia, but it also brings to light memories of which I am not proud. Additionally, time with family is amazing…until it’s not. I feel a sense of judgment or criticism from members who know my triggers, as well as a constant tug to regress to less mature behaviours. 

So! My tip is to pace the family time as much as possible. Don’t be afraid to take a solo walk, read a book in a quiet room when you’re not expected anywhere, sneak away for a nap, or even find peace cleaning or cooking something for the host (i.e. your parents). Additionally, I don’t want to prevent you from having deep and conflicting conversations, but choose the right topic and time to get those started. We all know the extent to which individuals can handle certain subjects and when they’d be in the right headspace to do so. For example, don’t bring up something heated at 10pm when your sister is dying to go to sleep (me) because you won’t get very far. Though that is the prime time for others (my husband). 

Finally, be confident in the person you’ve become. Don’t let your lovely, but tricky family dynamics and personalities lead you to second guess your success, decisions, life, and knowledge. Though this may involve constant nudges to yourself to follow suit, I believe it’s worth it in order to leave with your head held high. Remember that no one can force you to feel small without you letting them. You are stronger than that.

Hopefully this post reminded you of some important tools to help you celebrate your happiest, calmest, cosiest, most confident holiday season yet 🎄🎅

You got this!

Bea